If you wait the 20 games to promote someone so that their arb clock doesn't start until the next year, is it worth playing them in the minors during those first 20 games? If you just bench them, won't they be slightly more durable during the rest of the season in the majors?

As I understand it, technically, it's 20 minor league days. The reasoning behind the 20 days has to do with how a player's options are calculated. You need to keep a player down for 20 days for him to burn an option. If he is down for less than 20 days, then all of that time in the minors is actually counted as ML service time and he keeps his option. So by keeping him in the minors for 20 days, you're burning an option year for him, but you're gaining an extra year before arbitration.

Posted by golsen on 12/8/2013 12:27:00 PM (view original):20 GAMES. Season after season I ask this question. This post will make the answer easier to find when I search for my own user posts. Thank you!

No it's DAYS.

I think it's tecwrg, who always says to make it easy to remember just promote them EXACTLY one week after the BL regular season starts. So if your team begins on Sunday 12/8/PM promote them after the pm game NEXT SUNDAY.